Waitangi, Northland
For the main port and settlement at the Chatham Islands, see Waitangi, Chatham Islands
Waitangi is a township located in the Bay of Islands on the North Island of New Zealand. It is located close to the town of Paihia (of which it is now considered a part), 60 kilometres north of Whangarei. The name means weeping waters in Māori.
Founding of a nation
The Treaty of Waitangi (Te Tiriti o Waitangi) was initially signed on February 6, 1840 in a marquee erected in the grounds of James Busby's house at Waitangi by representatives of the British Crown, the chiefs of the Confederation of the United Tribes of New Zealand, and other Māori tribal leaders, and subsequently by other Māori chiefs at other places in New Zealand. The Treaty made New Zealand a British colony and is generally considered the founding document of New Zealand as a nation. Waitangi Day is the annual celebration of the signing, and is New Zealand's national holiday.
In preparation for New Zealand Centenary in 1940, the Treaty house at Waitangi was restored in the 1930s, and the Meeting House Te Whare Runanga was built beside it, sparking the first emegerance of the Treaty into Pākehā attention since the 19th century.
External links
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